Deciding on the order of a lot of these was difficult, as they're all outstanding records. If there's anything on this list that you have yet to check out, you should track them down and have a listen.

There were also a ton of other artists that released great albums this year, including The Cribs, Air, B.R.M.C., Handsome Furs, Feist, New Young Pony Club, Hard-Fi, Modest Mouse, The White Stripes, Simian Mobile Disco, The Maccabees, Caribou, Black Lips, Digitalism, etc. You should take the time to check those out as well.